Comparison

Hive® Game vs THE MACHINE

Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both games, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.

Head to head
About

Hive® Game

Experience the award-winning strategy board game digitally. This app offers a faithful adaptation of the classic game, featuring challenging AI, all official expansions, and customizable visuals. Perfect for both new players and seasoned veterans.

Highlights
  • Official Hive® rules and design
  • Includes all three official expansions
  • Advanced RustyBlade™ AI
  • Adjustable difficulty for beginners
  • Video tutorial by game creator
  • Customizable visual settings
  • Local network play
Features
Read full description

"What impresses me most about this Hive® app is how the AI plays with true strategic depth—enough to challenge even seasoned Hive veterans. The developers have captured the purity of the game beautifully: no clutter, no distractions, just clean design that lets the elegance of Hive shine through. A thoughtful, well-crafted adaptation." – John Yianni, creator of Hive® The award-winning tabletop classic Hive® is now in your pocket. Created with the blessing of the game’s designer, John Yianni, this app delivers a clean, focused, and beautifully polished digital Hive® experience. Hive® is a captivating strategy game often described as “nature’s chess.” There is no board — the game itself is built from the creatures you place. Your goal is simple: surround your opponent’s Queen Bee while keeping your own safe. Easy to learn, endlessly deep to master. OFFICIAL HIVE® EXPERIENCE Faithful to the vision of its original designer, this app captures the award-winning rules and timeless elegance of Hive® without compromise. THE COMPLETE HIVE® Play Hive® exactly as intended. Alongside the base game, all three official expansion pieces are included: Mosquito, Ladybug, and Pillbug. THE RUSTYBLADE™ AI Don’t settle for predictable opponents. RustyBlade™ is a bold, aggressive AI engine that plays with initiative and intent. It doesn’t aim for safe draws — it fights for victory. Expect intense, uncompromising strategic battles. PERFECT FOR BEGINNERS TOO New to Hive®? The fully adjustable difficulty lets RustyBlade™ become a patient training partner. Learn the ropes with a video tutorial by John Yianni (the creator of Hive), while the illustrated rulebook and Undo feature allow you to learn, experiment, and improve without pressure. ELEGANT & FULLY CUSTOMIZABLE A sleek design that adapts to your style. Choose your preferred board orientation (flat or pointy-top), select custom colors, and adjust wood grain intensity. Responsive controls, subtle animations, and haptic feedback ensure a smooth, immersive experience that brings the hive to life. UNIVERSAL PURCHASE Unlock the Elite Edition once and enjoy it on your iPhone, iPad, and Mac. ELITE EDITION: - Full access to all official expansions: Mosquito, Ladybug, and Pillbug. - Test your skills against advanced RustyBlade™ AI difficulty levels. - Personalize your experience with premium backgrounds and visual settings. - Detailed player statistics. - Game Center support (friend-invite matches only). - Local network play over the same Wi-Fi network. - Family Sharing: Share the Elite experience with your family at no extra cost. The Hive is humming. The army is ready. Are you? Official Website: https://hivegameapp.com

About

THE MACHINE

Engage with a mechanical puzzle box focused on experimentation and understanding cause and effect. Install and reorder parts to observe signal flow and solve objectives. Discover new hardware and deeper systems as the machine awakens.

Highlights
  • Mechanical puzzle box gameplay
  • Experimentation and cause/effect mechanics
  • 34 unique mechanism families
  • Stateful, order-sensitive puzzles
  • Tuning and Fusion systems
  • Offline play
  • Single optional purchase for full content
Features
Read full description

THE MACHINE is a mechanical puzzle box about experimentation, cause and effect, and learning a system by touching it. Install parts. Change their order. Send an input. Watch the signal travel through the machine. Every mechanism transforms, stores, redirects, amplifies, or relieves something. Solve each puzzle by making the whole machine satisfy its objectives. As THE MACHINE awakens, new hardware, tuning, fusion, routing, and deeper systems emerge. The rules stay consistent. The possibilities do not. • 34 mechanism families, each with its own behavior and physical identity • Stateful, order-sensitive puzzles where timing matters • Tuning and Fusion systems that turn familiar parts into new hardware • Five escalating Series, including the branching DUPLEX architecture • No ads, no subscriptions, no account required • Play offline on iPhone and iPad Series I and II are included. A single optional purchase unlocks Series III–V and everything beyond. Change something. Try again. Awaken THE MACHINE.

Screenshots

Hive® Game4 screens
THE MACHINE4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is rating: THE MACHINE at 5.0 against Hive® Game's 4.5. THE MACHINE also leads on update cadence (daily vs every 11 days). Hive® Game's advantage is ratings volume (280 vs 1) and device support (4 vs 2). On price, ads, in-app purchases and monetization model there is nothing between them.

Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. Hive® Game sells 1 one-off in-app purchase and THE MACHINE sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

THE MACHINE holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.5. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Hive® Game has 280 ratings behind it against 1, so its average is the more settled of the two.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Hive® Game ships an update every 11 days, THE MACHINE daily. The most recent releases landed on October 16, 2026 and September 29, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard4 real differences · 6 level
Hive® Game versus THE MACHINE: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterHive® GameTHE MACHINE
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.5 (280 ratings)5.0 (1 ratings) — better
Positive reviews63.3% of reviews—
Number of ratings280 — better1
Update frequencyEvery 11 daysDaily — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree with in-app purchases
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod, Mac — betteriPhone, iPad
Requires iOS15.6 — better16.0
Further details — not scored
Size11 MB12 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperGiantStep Kft.IAN FABIAN FAGERSTROM

Customer experience

Hive® Game

All ratings280 ratings
Positive85.4%
Neutral4.3%
Negative10.4%
Written reviews98 reviews
Positive63.3%
Neutral12.2%
Negative24.5%

THE MACHINE

All ratings1 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

In-app purchases

1 purchases

Hive® Game

One-time1
  • Elite Edition$9.99
1 purchases

THE MACHINE

One-time1
  • THE MACHINE$4.99

Questions

Is Hive® Game free?
Hive® Game is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is THE MACHINE free?
THE MACHINE is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Hive® Game or THE MACHINE?
THE MACHINE is rated higher. Hive® Game averages 4.5 out of 5 from 280 ratings, while THE MACHINE averages 5.0 from 1 ratings.
Do Hive® Game or THE MACHINE have ads?
Neither Hive® Game nor THE MACHINE shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Hive® Game or THE MACHINE?
Hive® Game ships an update every 11 days, and THE MACHINE daily. Most recently, Hive® Game was updated on October 16, 2026 and THE MACHINE on September 29, 2026.

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